Weaving mechanism



A. LE BLANC. WEAVING MECHANISM. APPLICATION FILED JULY 9. 1915. RENEWED OCT. 12.1920.

1,379, 1 93. v Patented May 24, 1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET l- A. LE BLANC.

WEAVING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION man JULY 9. ms. RENEWED OCT. 12. 1920.

Patented May 24,1921.

3 SHEETSSHEE'[ 2.

A. LE BLANC.

WEAVING MECHANISM.

0 JULY 9. i915. RENEWED 0m. 2, 20.

1,379 193.APPLICATI0N FlL UNITED sm es PATENT OFFICE.

ALEXIS LE BLANC, OE NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO THE COMPOSITE METAL LA'IH COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

\VEAVING MECHANISM.

Application filed July 9, 1915, Serial No. 38,913.

To (ZZZ whom it may concern Be it known that I, ALnxIs Ln BLANC, a citizen of the United States, residing at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful improvements in lVe-aving Mechanisms; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the artto which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to weaving mechanism. Its object is to provide means by which a positively operated shuttle shall deliver a weft strand directly to a mesh engaging finishing and reforming member of novel construction, without the intervention of guides or a reed. To this end the invention comprises the combinations and details set forth in the appended claims.

Figure 1 is a perspective taken from one side of the machine.

Fig. 2 is a partial end elevation from the side opposite that of Fig. 1.

Fig. 8 is a partial plan view on the side from'which Fig. 2 is taken.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged end elevation partly in section and with parts removed from the same side as Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a partial elevation taken from one side of the detailed improvements to be described.

The positively operated shuttle illustrated is adapted to travel through the plane of the lower rank of warp strands without touching or disturbing any of the strands being the shuttle described and claimed in a co1npanion application filed by me on March 24., 1915, Serial No. 16,625.

In this specification I have applied the same reference letters to various 7 parts which are found also in the companion application so that the identical features may be more readily compared.

A shuttle carrier 18 travels on a race-way not here illustrated. It is positively opera ed by means of a cable 37. The shuttle carries a bobbin 20 whose frame with its operative parts, to be described, is supported on the shuttle carrier.

At each end of the bobbin-frame of the shuttle are a pair of cupped wheels 21 carried by a shaft 22. The lips of the cupped wheels are indicated at 23 and these lips as they rotate engage grooves in the side A CORPORATION OF NEW Specification of Letters Patent.

YORK.

Patented May 24, 1921. Renewed Gctober 12, 1920. Serial No. 416,515.

of the shuttle-carrier to support the shuttle, the wheels in this general illustration bemg simply indicated as passing into the top of the groove. The cupped wheels have openings of cuspidal form as shown at 24 so that as the shuttle reciprocates these openings may pass over the successive warp strands without disturbing them.

Secured at one end of each of the shafts 22 is a gear-wheel 25 which engages the pockets of a rack-bar 26 extending across the machine.

The shuttle is to be reciprocated by a cable and power connections such as have been set forth in the companion application. As the shuttle moves from one side to the other the gear-wheels 25 engage the recesses of the rack-bar rotating the cupped wheels 21, so that the openings of the cupped wheels turn over the successive warp strands without disturbing them.

Jn the return movement the rack-.bar is slightlyshifted as described in detail in the companlon application so that its pockets correspond with the succeeding lower rank of warp strands, thus causing a re-timing or readjustment of the cupped wheels to permit them to engage the succeeding rank of warp strands.

As incidental features of the shuttle, there is illustrated a spring brake 50 secured to a spool on the end of the bobbin 20, the opposite end being secured to the frame of the shuttle. The brake has a friction washer 51 of leather or other material at one end and at the outer end the spring bears a clamping washer or nut 52. As described in the companion application this brake permits the bobbin to pay out the weft strand as it travels backward and forward, the strand being kept taut and the slack being taken up at each end of the stroke.

As the weft strand leaves the bobbin it passes between grooved guide rollers 53 which are carried by a sliding frame 54; located upon the frame of the shuttle and having extending outward rods 55 passing through bearings 56 on the shuttle-frame, and having interposed between the bearings and the pulley frame a coiled spring 57. This spring serves to take up the shock incident to the sudden return movement of the shuttle as it operates backward and forward across the machine.

The harness of the loom is shown at 58 Cir taken by a reel cylinder inthis and it will be understood that the outer warp strands and the weft strands engage the outer tooth of a toothed rotating cylinder 61. The teeth of this cylinder have inclined faces and are so formed as to firstengage and hold the mesh and selvage of the fabric, especially of a wire fabric, and then carry it over and finally permit it to slip off, to be or other structure. The case has the teeth lying side by side so as to form continuous longitudinal channels and broken circumferential channels. The fabric mesh as it is woven is placed along these grooves, the openings of the mesh taking over the several teeth with the result that as the fabric is thus laid out along this rotating cylinder it is reformed and brought to the desired unit arrangement of the mesh, that is, with'the four sides of the mesh in proper position for subsequent utilization.

The cylinder 61 lies immediately adjacent the shuttle and the frame of the shuttle is inclined at its outer side so that the weft wire leads directly across and slightly downward to engage the outer inder 61.

The preceding description is illustrated by Fig. 1 alone. In Fig. "2 and other figures as noted, I have illustrated the side of the machine opposite to that illustrated in Fig. 1 and have shown the means which are pro vided for the rotation of the roller 61 and its accurate adjustment to the duties required of it.

represents the power shaft carrying a driving worm gear 71, operating a gearwheel72 to rotate a shaft 73. The gearwheel 7 2 has a disk face 7 which may carry a sleeve for the shaft 7 3 and is secured by nuts 75 which pass through slots 76 so that the wheel may be nicely adjusted to the req 'uisite position before the operation begins.

77 represents the inner part of the sleeve through WlilOll' the shaft 73 passes carrying at itsinner end a gear-wheel '4 8 which meshes with an idler 79 and nnally driving a pinion 80 on the end of the shaft carrying the roller 61. V V

The invention which 1 have described presents an operative mechanism. 1 have found that the placing of the weft strand properly along the longitudinal groove of the roller 61 is facilitated by the fact that the shuttle reduces'in speed at the end of its: travel.

When I have the shuttle close up against the'roller 61 at the start I can then put the weft strand well down into the groove. As the shuttle travels across with the weft strand paying out the roller 61 rotates just enough "at an Then as the shuttle slows up there is time for the rOller 61 to rotate enough to let the speed it is clifficult to get the tooth of the cyl- V engaged shaft 84 opposite to the gear 83 is ordinary speed to take the That end of. 'weft' strand across the bottom of the groove and against the wall of the succeeding teeth.

loop turn about the outside of the next tooth and have the next strand take in against theadj acentwall of that tooth ready to move across that groove space as the shuttle goes back to the other side. In rapid operation, however, this accurate placing of the weft strand with the described mecha. nism is not always feasible. At a rapid weft strand well down into the groove and turn firmly and evenly about the tooth. When the weft strand is placed in a rapid operation, the wire, in a sense, is jerked out by the bobbin and is more likely to whip about the first tooth of the roller 61 and pull over the top of the tooth. V V

I propose to make an advantage of this and to add adevice by .vhicli I may purposely be negligent of any precision in plac ing the wire. V

I put it about the first tooth of the roller 61 at the start, but it may-whip off or not at the end ofthe movement in view of the additional parts which 1 haveprovided, and this" improvement also enables me to move the shuttle a little farther away from the roller 61, which in rapid action is more or less desirable. V

I have indicated what may happen sometimes in the previously described construc-' tion when running at high speed. In addi tion to this whipping off itwill be observed that as the roller. 61 rotates and a weft strand is stretched along the length of the roller that end of the roller farthest from the starting point of the weft strand will have traveled farther than the beginning end had traveled when the weft strand was first looped about the first tooth. This would result in laying out the weft strand diagonally along the top ofa row of teeth.

I have, therefore, provided device for tale ing the weft strand at the end of its laying out and carrying it positively forward along the line of rotation of the roller 61 and slightly in, advance ofthe groove it is to enter so that it may take its place accurately 'in the groove, the slight additional forward movement being compensatedby the slight additional rotation of the roller carrying the groove forward. The'means which 1 have employed are under 7 the control of the shuttle.

At 81 is shown a gear-wheel arranged to turn on theshaft of the roller 61. This gear bears a dogE-BEZ. The gear-wheel 81 is by a driving gear 83. carried a short shaft 8 journaled in a bracket 85,

attached'to the machine. fit the end of the a partial or inutllated gear-wheel 86.

the shaft 84 is ionrnaled in a bracket 87 which carries guide clips 88 through which passes a bar 89 having a section of rack teeth 90 wh ch are engaged by the mutilated gear-wheel 86. At one end of the bar 89 is secured a bent rod 91, whose outer upwardly bent end lies in the path of the shuttle. The opposite end of the bar has secured to it a spring 92 and this spring is likewise secured at the opposite side of the loom to a similar bar, the parts here clescribed being duplicated at that side of the machine. It is the function of the bent rod 91 to carry back in one direction the bar 89 when the shuttle moves in that direction, that is, in the illustration of Fig. 1, the spring 92 will draw back the bar 89. It is the positive action of the shuttle upon the bent rod 91 and through the-bar 89, the rack teeth 90, mutilated gear-wheel 86 and the gear-wheels 83, 81, that brings up the dog 82 into engagement with the weft strand to carry it over a little beyond the next longitudinal groove, permitting it then to take into that groove, and it is the action of the spring 92 which returns through the parts named the dog 82 to a position below the line of movement of the shuttle, preventing the shuttle from contacting with it as it sweeps across that part of its travel. It is apparent that one action of the bar 89 and its rack teeth 90 upon the mutilated gearwheel 86 turns its teeth down in a line at a right angle to the movement of the bar 89.

Some provision must be made for presenting the mutilated gear-wheel 86 to the action of the rack teeth 90 when the bar 89 returns after an action on the mutilated gear in one direction. To this end, I have secured on the outer end of the shaft 84 a finger 93 arranged to be engaged by a pin 9t on the side f the rack bar 89. n the return of the rack bar after an operation, the pin 94 will strike the finger 93 and carry over or partially rotate the shaft 84: so that the mutilated gear may be engaged by the rack teeth 90. I11 line with this idea, I have also secured on a bracket 95 a stop 96 which lies in the path of the end tooth on the gear-wheel 86 to prevent it from dropping down to a lower position than would permit the ready return of the mutilated gearwheel for prompt engagement by the rack teeth 90.

I thus dispense with any intermediate guides and with the reed or beater because this cylinder directly receiving the mesh from the harness and shuttle performs at once the functions of guides and a reed or heater, placing the wire mesh in the desired relation and holding it there until it is firmly formed and delivered to the succeeding part of the machine. This invention is especially useful in a type of machine such as is illustrated by the application of F. Nossagk, Serial No. 846,408, filed June 20, 1914, for machines for producing composite metal laths, in which it is important that a unit measurement shall be maintained throughout the machine which finally produces a metal lath by putting a coating of clay at the junction of the wires of the mesh, these buttons of clay being afterward burned to form buttons of brick.

I have described the specific shuttle shown not as essential to the idea of my invention, but as the preferred form of shuttle especially in the class of weaving u st indicated.

In feeding in the outer or selvage strands, which will come together at the first tooth of the roller 61, it is necessary in using the cupped wheels 21, to keep these wires apart. I have therefore provided a pin 98, on the rack bar, so that the outer strand will be kept in the proper position to permit the cupped wheels to pass over, the outer strand being then permitted to join the next strand so that they both meet at the first tooth of the roller 61.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim is:

1. In a loom, the combination with a shuttle, of means for receiving directly from the shuttle the fabric mesh as it is woven provided with means for reforming the meshes.

2. In a loom, the combination with a shuttle, of a cylinder having a series of teeth forming longitudinal and circumferential grooves and receiving the warp strands and the weft strands directly without the intervention of a reed or beater.

3. In a loom, the combination with a posi-. tively operated shuttle, of a rotating mem ber having a series of teeth for receiving the successive meshes of the fabric directly from the shuttle.

4:. In a loom, the combination with a harness and a shuttle, of a cylinder having a series of inclined teeth arranged on the cylinder to form longitudinal and circumferential grooves and receiving the warp strands and the weft strands directly from the harness and the shuttle without the intervention of guides or a reed.

5. In a loom, the combination with a shuttle, of a rotating shaft or cylinder having grooves to receive the weft strands, and means to engage a weft strand at one end and force it into a groove.

6. In a loom, the combination with a shuttle, of a shaft or cylinder having a series of grooves to receive the weft strand directly from the shuttle with means for correcting any displacement of the strand on the shaft or cylinder.

7. In a loom, the combination with a positively operated shuttle, of a rotating member having a series of grooves for receiving the weft strand directly from the shuttle, a dog, and means for partially rotating the dog to engage the weft strand at one end and place it in a groove.

8. In a loom, the combination with a positively operated shuttle, of a rotating member having a series of grooves for receiving the successive meshes of the fabric directly from the shuttle, and means at each end of the rotating member for engaging and positively placing a weft strand ina groove.

9. In a loom, the combination with a shuttle and a rotating member adapted to re-' ceivethe weft strand directly from the shuttle, of a gear-wheel on the end of the rotating member carrying a dog to engage the weft strand and means operated directly from the shuttle to positively operate the gear-wheel and the dog.

10. In a' loom, the combination with a rotary dog or tooth for engaging and placing the weft strand, and a toothed cylinder to receive therstrand, of gear for en aging and driving the dog, a shaft having a muti-' lated gear on one end and a rack barengaging the shaft wlth means for returning the SiJIZL11Cl,'l-l1l a toothed cylinder to receive the strand, of operatingmeans comprising a shaft, a mutilated gear on theshaft, a rack bar for engaging the mutilated gear, and means for presenting the teeth of the mutilated gear in the line of movement of the teeth of the rack, bar.

12. In a loom, the combination with means for taking the two outer warp strands at a single point, of a shuttle having cupped wheels traveling across the warp strands and means for holding the outer warp strands apart at the point of passage of the cupped wheels. V

In testimony whereof I have hereunto signed my name. i

ALEXIS LE BLANC. 

